At a June 10 Chinese Community Center (CCC) general meeting, community
committee members unanimously agreed to allocate $30,000 to hire
a cleaning company to combat the problem of garbage on the streets,
which is only expected to worsen as the summer progresses. This
move will provide Chinatown residents and visitors with fresh, clean
air.

According to committee member Chen Shangren, the refuse that restaurants
pile up on the streets spoils easily in the summertime.

In addition, the uneven roads facilitate the accumulation of oily
liquids oozing out of the garbage, which fouls up the air and Chinatowns
image. Therefore, he suggested that the streets be washed during
the summer. According to his estimates, approximately $30,000 would
be needed to ensure street cleaning six days a week.

Contributions of $100 to $200 from each of the 60 members of the
CCC Committee will total approximately $10,000; funds from businesses,
which will benefit from the service, should not be too difficult
to obtain and will provide for the rest. However, some members voiced
concern that certain unsavory establishments might simply leave
the responsibility of cleaning up their own storefronts to the CCC.
It would be necessary to educate restaurant owners on how to properly
dispose of their garbage.

It was also mentioned that as New York City water reserves are
low, washing streets freely might result in a fine. Even though
the CCC is willing to take the lead in the clean-up, it needs to
apply to the government for permission, which should not be a problem
as Wall Street, Rockefeller Center, and other such areas have obtained
it. CCC director Wu Tingdian remarked that he met with several business
owners privately last week to discuss this matter, and they were
quite supportive.

In addition, CCC representatives recently met with the deputy director
of the Department of Transportation. They anticipate that potholes
throughout Chinatown will be filled in by the end of the month,
avoiding the accumulation of unpleasant puddles.

Another affair brought up at the meeting includes the creation
of a "Chinatown Development Committee" which will focus
on the long term re-development of the Lower East Side. The CCC
expects this committee to maintain active communication with the
Lower Manhattan Development Corporation (LMDC) on rebuilding the
Chinatown economy. For the moment, the Chinatown Development Committee
is overseeing Mid-Autumn and Spring Festival activities. Li Zongbao,
a member of Community Board 2, has been invited to join this committee.

The CCC also plans to hire public relations and traffic consultants.
Although it has made numerous contributions to the community, such
as the approximately $300,000 of aid it gave to New York Chinese
School last year, many do not know of its deeds, so the CCC plans
to make itself known to the outside world through mainstream media
by hiring L.S. Public Relation Inc., said Li Zongbao. The CCC is
also hiring an individual with plenty of administrative experience
as a traffic consultant.

At potential meetings with the Department of Transportation regarding
transportation issues, the CCC might be unable to provide concrete
solutions, at which point such a consultant would be immensely helpful.
For example, the government is currently planning to build a subway
line from 65th Street to Wall Street, but unfortunately has not
taken Chinatown into account. However, if the CCC had a consultant
who knew whether or not the ground beneath Confucius Tower could
conceivably be used as a train station, it would be able to provide
a concrete recommendation to the government.

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